Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov declared that Ukraine’s eastern and southern regions, now recognized in Russia’s constitution, are “historic Russian territories” and that Moscow’s war is about protecting the rights and culture of their people—not imperial expansion. In a wide-ranging interview, Lavrov claimed the 2014 “bloody coup” alienated Russian-speaking Ukrainians, accused Kyiv of “exterminating everything Russian,” and dismissed calls for ceasefire as attempts to “buy time.” He criticized Western leaders for “propaganda” around child abductions and the 1991 borders, citing NATO expansion and repression of Russian language rights as root causes for the conflict. Lavrov stressed Moscow’s need for a buffer zone due to ongoing Ukrainian strikes on Russian territory, reiterating that peace requires restoration of minority rights and recognition of “new territorial realities.”